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Preston eye second Darikwa bid

It is understood the 23-year-old full-back has handed in a transfer request as he looks to force through a move to the Sky Bet Championship club ahead of his contract expiring next summer.

The Spirites, who have already lost Jimmy Ryan and Gary Roberts this summer, are not prepared to budge from their valuation for their player, though.

Preston are keen to acquire players for both full-back positions and a goalkeeper – with the future of number-one target Sam Johnstone still yet to be decided – and manager Simon Grayson admits they are considering whether to make another approach for Darikwa.

Addressing the speculation at a press conference on Thursday, he said: “It’s no secret that right-back’s a position where we’ve made a bid for a player.

“The other club’s valuation is higher than ours at this moment in time. Do we go back in? We’ll have to wait and see.

“Obviously the player’s made it aware that he wants to play at a higher level with a transfer request that has gone in that I’ve seen in the press. We’ll see where we go.

“We’re working to conclude these days but they are not as easy as everyone expects them to be,”